


We Live & Learn

by intentandinvention



Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Post-Low Chaos Ending, emily kaldwin is twisting the empire around her finger one grown man at a time, mild corvo/daud if you squint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-24
Updated: 2016-09-24
Packaged: 2018-08-17 03:06:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8127988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intentandinvention/pseuds/intentandinvention
Summary: Six months after the Plague's cured, Emily's offered a general amnesty to all citizens – and to Corvo's dismay, Daud has arrived at Dunwall Tower to accept it.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Um. Look, this turned up in my head this afternoon and suddenly it's 11pm and a 2k drabble has appeared and idek what happened, I should really get back to my other fics. Edited by the wonderful [amoeve](http://archiveofourown.org/users/amoeve/pseuds/amoeve), who doesn't even go here and yet is still awesome enough to edit these fics about random weirdos and then demand a sequel.

The Plague has been cured for six months when Daud comes to the Tower to request the Empress's general amnesty, wearing a plain black coat and unarmed but for his hands. Corvo's first impulse is to have him arrested, but Emily said the amnesty meant everyone, so he settles for pulling the assassin aside to an anteroom, fists clenched. 

'Just give me _one_ excuse,' he growls. Daud, worn and weary, gives him something that might once have been a smile. 

'I don't intend to, bodyguard.' 

Emily's hands, delicate and small on the imperial throne, tighten and pale on the armrests when Daud kneels to her, and Corvo wonders if he'll be calling the guards anyway. But then she nods, the movement small and curt.

'Stand,' she tells Daud, and he does, keeping to his position a few feet short of the steps up to the dais. Emily also stands, to the murmured surprise of the watching court. 'Leave us,' she tells them all, and the murmurs rise, the shuffling of feet added to them as the Tower Guard ushers the audience out. 'Guards as well,' Emily orders, when the last courtier has left. 'The Lord Protector will stay with me; I will speak to this man in private.' 

Corvo's trained every one of the Guard personally — they salute their Empress and depart without question, leaving the girl, her bodyguard and her mother's murderer alone in the imperial throne room. Emily remains standing, her hands behind her back, and watches Daud from the dais. She's a head taller than him from here; he has to crane his neck to meet her eyes. Corvo, to the side of the dais, is calculating the distance between them, the steps he'd have to cover if Daud attacked, the lines of sight for the small crossbow bolt ready in his sleeve. 

'State your case,' Emily says, just as she has to all of the others. 

Daud nods briefly. 'You know my crimes, Ma'am. Am I ordered to list them?' 

Emily's jaw twitches. 'No. No, I know well enough what you’ve done.' 

'Then you know what I'm asking for. That I've taken a risk coming here to ask it.' His gaze slips to Corvo for a moment, and there's no fear in it. 'I know your amnesty might not include me. But… well, my mother always said they who don't ask, don't get.' 

Corvo closes his eyes briefly against the surge of fury rising in his chest and the unexpected threat of tears, and glances back at Emily to see her eyes wide, her mouth set in a thin line. 

'My mother used to say something similar,' she says icily, the implication clear, and as if that doesn’t hit Corvo hard enough, she sounds painfully like Jessamine. Daud winces as if struck, lowers his eyes to the step at her feet.

Emily lets the silence stretch, chin high and breath slow, and Corvo would bet that her fists are clenched behind her back.

He’s waiting for a reaction from Daud, but it's Emily who moves, running down the steps from the dais straight at the assassin, and before Corvo's moved more than his hands she's punched Daud in the stomach with all her strength. Daud barely shifts. 

Corvo blinks to pull Emily back and stand beside her, his sword at Daud's throat to forestall any retaliation and his left arm fast across Emily's chest, holding her still as she struggles, furious. ‘Let me _go_!’ she demands through tears, pummeling at Corvo’s arm. 

Daud holds his arms out, his hands wide, and doesn't even back away from the blade, baring his throat to it. He keeps his eyes on Corvo, avoiding looking at Emily’s distress. 'One excuse,' Corvo warns again, and when Daud nods just enough to move the tip of the blade he allows himself to turn his attention to Emily, turning the restraint to a hug and letting her turn into him, arms around him as she pretends not to cry.

He strokes her back with his free hand, lowers his head to her hair and murmurs that it's okay, that he's here and she's safe. When her sobs start to fade he flicks his eyes upward for just a moment to check on Daud, glares a warning that he hopes is understood as a gagging order. 

Emily doesn't take long to stop crying; she never has. She raises her head to Corvo's ear, and he indicates with a hum that he's listening. 'My wrist hurts,' she whispers. She sounds half amused, half appalled at herself. Corvo can't help a bit of a smile, and raises her wrist, bends it carefully and watches her grimace. 

'No damage done,' he whispers back. 

'If you're planning on making a habit of it, best to power it from the shoulder,' Daud says calmly.

They both look at him, and something like a smile twists his lip for a moment before he's carefully blank again. 'Your stance could do with improvement too,' he adds. 

Emily glares, turning to face him. 'I haven't hit anyone before,' she informs him. 

He starts to nod but then shies back as Corvo's still-raised blade scrapes over his stubble, and raises his arms. 'It was a pretty good first attempt,' he concedes. 'But next time, use that momentum you build in the rush and throw it into the punch. With your shoulder, mind you, not your hand. Don't bend your wrist, especially if you're not sure how solid your target is.' His voice relaxes as he speaks, and Corvo finds himself wondering if this is a familiar speech, maybe from training Whalers to fight. 

Emily draws herself up. ‘Are you suggesting I do it again?’ she asks curiously. Daud just shrugs.

They both look to Corvo then, and he stares at the two of them, disbelieving, but lowers his blade, relaxing his hold on Emily. Daud exhales, bringing his arms to rest in front of him and relaxing his stance, and Emily turns and takes a couple of steps forward, missing the two fingers that Corvo points at Daud’s eyes and then his own. Daud doesn’t miss the gesture, though, and that’s _definitely_ a smile as he nods in acknowledgement before focusing his attention on Emily. Corvo finds himself returning it, snaps his attention away appalled at himself. 

‘So,’ Daud says, slipping back into the tone Corvo can’t help but think of as his teaching voice. ‘If you’re hitting someone from standing still – because you can’t always rely on having the distance to build up such spectacular momentum – you need to plant yourself, give yourself a good steady base. Feet apart, bend your knees a little.’ Emily does as she’s told, and Corvo recognises the stance copied from her fencing lessons. Daud nods approvingly. ‘That’s right. Now, when you punch, you do it with your whole upper body. Don’t straighten your arm until the last minute or you’ll lose your momentum, don’t bend your wrist or you might roll it. The faster you hit, the harder you hit. Keep your fist loose, don’t bend your thumb in because if you hit hard enough you’ll break it. Now, you want to hit with _this_ part — can I show you?’ 

They both look to Corvo, who knows when he’s outnumbered. He sheathes his blade, looks to the heavens for aid and when none emerges he sighs heavily, and tells himself to have patience. ‘With _your_ permission, Em,’ he reminds her, and when she turns away he glares at Daud. 

‘All right then,’ Emily says cautiously. Daud takes her wrist, his movements slow and deliberate, and gently drives it into his gloved palm, showing her how to move. Her small wrist is entirely engulfed by his heavy glove, and Corvo, on the edge of shoving them apart, wonders if too much tension can actually kill a man. And yet. Daud looks up after the first impact, almost as if he’s asking permission anew, and he stays carefully out of Emily’s space, steps back smartly after a couple of demonstrations. 

The Empress flexes her fingers, practises the upper body movement on the air. Her jacket isn’t well-designed for any kind of movement, and Corvo finds himself making a note to talk to her tailor as she turns back to Daud, her stance corrected. ‘All right then,’ she says. Daud looks to Corvo in query, and Corvo dips his chin sharply, not trusting himself to speak. 

Emily has always learned fast. She makes her move when Daud’s attention is still on Corvo, punching fast and as hard as she can. The breath leaves Daud’s lungs in a surprised gasp and he almost doubles over, hands going to his stomach. 

‘Better?’ Emily asks, sounding satisfied. 

Daud straightens, breathes in, looking disgustingly proud of himself. ‘Much better,’ he agrees. He pauses then, flicks his eyes up to Corvo, who keeps his expression carefully impassive. ‘Still room for improvement, though.’ 

Emily takes a few steps back so that she can look the assassin in the eye without craning her neck. ‘Teach me,’ she says. 

‘Wait, what?’ Corvo interrupts, alarmed. ‘Em, that’s _not_ —’ 

‘If he takes quarters here, you can watch him, right?’ she asks, not turning. ‘I want to learn to fight, he can teach me, and you can keep an eye on him whilst he’s doing it. And Arms Master Watson hasn’t been replaced yet. He can help train the Guard too.’ She hasn’t moved her eyes from Daud’s, but they both feel her attention shift. ‘Don’t think I’ve forgiven or forgotten what you did. But I meant the amnesty for everyone, and you’ll be proof of it, if and _only_ if you behave yourself. Or I’ll give you to Corvo.’ 

Daud glances at Corvo, a glimmer of amusement in his eyes and the set of his mouth. It takes Corvo a moment before he realises the accidental implication behind Emily’s words, and when he does he feels warmth flood his cheeks, and redoubles his glare at Daud. Only to find him staring at Emily again, looking a little nonplussed at her sudden and imperious rearrangement of his life. Corvo can’t help but be cheered by the knowledge that he’s not the only grown man Emily can confound so thoroughly. Finally Daud scratches at his stubble and nods. ‘As you wish, Ma’am,’ he says. ‘With your permission, I’ll retrieve my belongings and be back by sundown.’ 

Corvo frowns. ‘What about your Whalers?’ Rumours of the blackclad gang had faded with the Plague; he’d assumed they’d left Dunwall as their leader had planned to, until Daud showed up here. 

‘Split our earnings and told them to find themselves proper homes, once the Plague lifted,’ Daud answers. ‘We weren’t taking any more contracts, not after –’ He stumbles over the words he won’t say, but recovers after a moment. ‘After everything. They’re almost all gone now, and I’ll give the names of the rest over to Thomas before I leave. They’re why I took so long to turn up here.’ 

‘You can go,’ Emily says. ‘Corvo, will you go with him to get his amnesty document filled out?’ There’s a particular nuance to her voice when she’s giving an order rather than making a request, and Corvo recognises it immediately, and swallows his objection. 

‘Of course,’ he says, and he moves past her, jerking his head towards the doors to tell Daud he’s dismissed. The assassin picks up the meaning, and bows his head to Emily before turning to follow. But he stops at the door, and Corvo glances over his shoulder to see the two of them watching each other. Daud hesitates then, bringing a gloved hand briefly to the back of his neck then dropping it. 

‘Emily?’ he says finally, and she cocks her head to one side, eyebrows raised. ‘I’m sorry.’ 

Emily tips her chin up. ‘Good.’ 

Daud swallows hard, and leaves ahead of Corvo. Corvo’s about to pull the door closed when Emily speaks again. ‘Corvo? A moment?’ 

‘I should –’ 

‘Please, Corvo.’ Her voice trembles a little, and he silently berates himself, and pushes the door shut. There are ten guards outside, they can deal with Daud if he does anything stupid. Emily wipes her eyes, sniffling a little, and Corvo strides quickly towards her over the expanse of the marble floor, lets her clamp her arms around his sides in a hug. ‘Did I mess up?’ she mumbles into his coat. 

Corvo squeezes her gently, and makes himself think before he gives the negative response at the tip of his tongue. ‘It’s… not what I would have done,’ he says carefully, thinking about the snarled threat he’d offered Daud in the anteroom. ‘But, well, I’m not _always_ right,’ he adds. Emily giggles, a little muffled by the thick material, and he thinks about Daud guiding her wrist, patient and careful, and channeling her need to lash out into something constructive, something Corvo hadn’t even really thought of. He makes up his mind and gently prises Emily off him, his hands on her shoulders, and crouches down a little so that they’re level. ‘I think you did the right thing,’ he tells her. ‘And if not, well, we’ll deal with that when it comes to it. No matter what, I’ll keep you safe.’ 

She smiles, and scrubs her face with her sleeve. ‘And _I’ll_ keep _you_ safe,’ she says firmly, and they grin together, Corvo standing straight again and sweeping a deep, theatrical bow before he leaves, like he used to when she only came up to his knee. Her delighted laughter follows him out into the hallway, where Daud straightens from his slouch against the wall, a question in his look. 

‘With me,’ Corvo tells him, and the assassin falls in beside him without a word. 

**Author's Note:**

> Come and fanperson with me on tumblr ([intentandinvention](http://intentandinvention.tumblr.com))! - the Dishonored hype is mounting as we approach November 11th, although, uh, a lot of it is Overwatch family fluff reblogs at the moment.


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